Monday, November 4, 2024, 1:35 p.m.
The press conference offered by Carlo Ancelotti in the run-up to the Champions League match between Real Madrid and Milan this Tuesday at the Santiago Bernabéu had as its central issue LaLiga’s decision to maintain the scheduled matchday despite the tragedy that occurred in Valencia due to DANA that hit that area of Spain with special virulence and caused more than two hundred deaths. «It’s been a week since the tragedy. We have sadness. We are very close to Valencia and all the towns that have been affected. Hopefully this can be resolved soon. Talking about football at the moment is a bit complicated, just as it is complicated to play football because we are part of this country and all this affects a lot,” the Real Madrid coach began his speech, regretting that the matches were not canceled and He once again complained about the little attention paid to footballers and coaches in this type of matters.
«Nobody wanted to play. This seemed like the right decision to me, but we don’t rule and we have to respect the decisions made by those in charge,” said Carletto, who elaborated that “football had to stop this weekend” and then “help, even if not.” has stopped.” «Football is a party and you can celebrate when you are well. But when people are not well, there is no need to party. Football had to stop because it is the most important of the least important things in life. But we are employees of this world, we are not the ones in charge,” insisted Ancelotti, who stressed that all the coaches were “agree with stopping” but argued that the power that the trainers have “is equal to zero.” «There is a phrase that says that the show must go on but it does not. We are employees and sometimes decisions are made,” he said.
Ancelotti avoided going into assessing the incidents that broke out during the visit that the Kings and the President of the Government made on Sunday to the Valencian town of Paiporta, but showed his empathy with the feelings of the citizens. «They are frustrated, it is quite normal because what happened this week there has been incredible, but I am not here to evaluate what the politicians have done. I am sad to see people affected in this way. “We are in 2024 and we are not capable of fixing this type of tragedies,” commented the Real Madrid coach, who pointed out that “politics is a very complicated issue, not only here in Spain but in all countries.” «What is the fault of politics, I honestly don’t know. But what I know is that yesterday’s frustration is understandable because there are people who have lost everything,” he added.
Ballon d’Or
This whole situation made Ancelotti tiptoe when analyzing the match against Milan during his press conference. «We don’t really want to talk about football because compared to what happened in Valencia it is less important, but it is our profession and we move forward. “It is a special match, but everything takes second place,” Ancelotti, who spent glorious years at Milan, first as a footballer and later as coach of the Lombard team, said about that duel. “We have prepared the match because we are professionals and we will try to win,” explained the Real Madrid coach despite acknowledging that “it is very difficult because you don’t have your head on your work all the time.”
He did allude to the awarding of the Ballon d’Or to Rodrigo Hernández when the majority of pools pointed to Vinicius as the winner of the trophy. «It has been a difficult week and it is a difficult week because the atmosphere is not normal, but not because of the Ballon d’Or. The Ballon d’Or has passed, congratulate the winners. The sadness is not there but because of what is happening here in Spain,” said the Italian, who insisted: “Vinicius is sad like us, but not because he has not won the Ballon d’Or but because he is seeing what has happened in Valencia ».